Electric vehicle drivers will have more options to recharge in Canberra, with 77 new public charging stations to be built in the capital.
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The additional chargers represent a significant increase to the current public charging network of about 30 stations.
There will be 154 charging plugs across the network of new stations, with the majority to be built in Canberra's city centre. The exact locations have not been made public only the general areas but the plan is to get them all in place next year, with work to start soon.
"We'll see them all coming pretty quickly," the ACT's Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Shane Rattenbury said.
Charging stations will be added to areas right across the territory, as part of a growing effort to build the infrastructure needed so the ACT can phase out internal combustion engine cars from 2035, the date set last month.
Rebates would be available to bodies corporate where charging points were installed for the building, according to Mr Rattenbury. The details of how that would work are yet to be made public. It might be on the basis of the number of units in the block. One $2000 rebate for every 50 units was one option.
The ACT government sought 50 public charging stations when it went to the market earlier this year, but three providers will be able to deliver more for the same $1.4 million contract.
Charging providers Jolt, Evie Networks and Engie will install the new stations, with most to be switched on in 2023. The first will be installed next week at Hotel Realm in Barton.
The providers and the government are still negotiating the precise locations of the chargers, which will be split across publicly and privately owned sites.
The government said 31 chargers would be installed in the central business district, with seven each for North Canberra, Belconnen and South Canberra.
Tuggeranong would receive nine chargers, while Gungahlin and Canberra East would both receive four. The combined Woden Valley, Weston Creek and Molonglo area would receive eight chargers.
Energy Minister Rattenbury said greater access to fast and reliable charging infrastructure would combat range-anxiety.
"We know that zero emissions vehicles are the future of not only the ACT, but also the global transport system," Mr Rattenbury said.
"Most electric vehicle owners choose to charge their cars at home, but there is still a need to expand our network of public charging infrastructure."
Mr Rattenbury said supporting the transition to zero-emissions vehicles showed the ACT government was future-proofing the city's transport needs and reducing the capital's greenhouse gas emissions.
The majority of public electric vehicle chargers already operating in the ACT are concentrated in the area between Dickson and Griffith, a publicly available database of charging points shows.
MORE A.C.T. POLITICS NEWS:
More than 500 publicly accessible electric vehicle charging stations will need to be installed across Canberra before the end of the decade to support the take-up of zero-emission cars, an internal ACT government assessment found late last year.
Public chargers are expected to be vital to allow apartment owners to switch to electric cars in buildings where it is technically difficult to retrofit charging infrastructure to carparks.
The number of electric vehicles on the territory's roads is expected to grow to at least 25,000 by 2030, up from roughly 1300 currently. However, the government believes the number of electric vehicles by then could be as high as 42,000.
The majority of adult Canberrans are interested in buying an electric vehicle when they next replace their car, but high prices remain the most significant barrier, a study commissioned for the ACT in 2020 found.
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Steve Evans
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Steve Evans is a reporter on The Canberra Times. He's been a BBC correspondent in New York, London, Berlin and Seoul and the sole reporter/photographer/paper deliverer on The Glen Innes Examiner in country New South Wales. "All the jobs have been fascinating - and so it continues."
Jasper Lindell
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
Jasper Lindell joined The Canberra Times in 2018. He is a Legislative Assembly reporter, covering ACT politics and government. He also writes about development, transport, heritage, local history, literature and the arts, as well as contributing to the Times' Panorama magazine. He was previously a Sunday Canberra Times reporter.
